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Author:2pointhome

Joined:Jun 1, 2008

Instructables:13

published: Aug 11, 2008



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How 2.0: Make a Solar Cell Phone Charger

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PRINT PDF introHow 2.0: Make a Solar Cell Phone Charger



From http://www.2pointhome.com



A little soldering is all it takes to make this cool little emergency cell phone charger. Keep it in the glove box of your car, in case you ever get stranded in the woods and start to hear banjo music!



You might be able to find the mini solar panels at a store that sells science or electronics equipment; otherwise you can order them online. Please note, you'll also be cutting the wire on the cell phone charger, so make sure it's not the only one you have! You can often find cheap chargers at discount stores like Big Lots -- it doesn't matter if it's AC or car compatible, since you'll only be using the end that plugs in your phone.



MATERIALS:



1 Altoids Tin case

2 Mini Solar Panels (3V 20mA each)

1 Solder (3")

1 Small Heat Shrink Tubing (4")

1 Large Heat Shrink Tubing (4")

1 Double Sided Tape (3")

1oz Flux

1 Solder Iron

1 Heat Gun

1 Wire Stripper

1 cell phone charger





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step 1Step1: Cut wires & tubing

Take the 2 solar power panels and cut all four wires to about 1" in length. Cut 1/4" of plastic off of the tip of each wire with the wire stripper so copper wires are exposed. This exposed wire is called a 'lead.' Cut the small heat shrink tubing into four equal pieces (1" each). Slide the small heat shrink tubing onto both black wires.





step 2Step 2: Solder solar panel leads

Using a toothpick, paint leads with flux on a red wire from one solar panel, and a black wire from the other solar panel. Put those two leads together, and solder using your piece of solder and the soldering iron.





step 3Step 3: Heat-shrink tubing

Slide small heat shrink tubing over the leads you just soldered together. Heat the tubing with heat gun just enough for it to shrink.





step 4Step 4: Cut phone charger wire

Cut off the wire from your old charger to about 2.5 feet and strip off 2.5" of outer plastic from the loose end. Cut 1/4" off of each of the inside wires to make leads. Slide the full length of the large heat shrink tubing onto this main wire for later use in Step 6





step 5Step 5: Flux, solder and heat-shrink loose leads

On your main wire, slide a piece of small heat shrink tubing onto the red wire. Flux all loose leads of main wire as well as the solar panels with the toothpick. Solder red leads from main wire and solar panels together. Repeat with black wires. Slide heat shrink tubings over these soldered leads and use heat gun to shrink.





step 6Step 6: Test charger

Test the charger by connecting it to a phone under bright light.





step 7Step 7: Heat-shrink solar panel leads

On your main wire, slide large heat shrink tubing over the two soldered leads which connect to the solar panels. Use the heat gun to shrink the tubing.





step 8Step 8: Tape and close

On the back of the solar panels, cover the two brass rivets with double-sided tape (so they don't make contact with the Altoids tin.) Tape the two solar panels on the inside lid of the tin. Tuck the main wire into the case and close. Go somewhere sunny (Florida is nice) and charge it up! For more great DIY projects visit: http://www.2pointhome.com





27 comments Add Comment









Feb 14, 2010. 2:23 PMdeathpod says:

can a led work in place of a more orthodox diode?



REPLY







Dec 3, 2009. 7:25 PMmike_k11 says:

But if i put a multi charger instead of my cell phone cable ?...how can i chose a time 1/2, 1 or 2 hours switch ? and nothing else



Thanx



REPLY







Dec 3, 2009. 8:49 AMRick_Covert says:

A polarity protecting diode should be a MUST when working with a project of this type for safety reasons and to protect the phone. Everyone makes mistakes and it would be tragic to loose a free or $40 pluse phone over something as careless as reversing the polarity of an under $10 solar charger. However the other posters have made valid points about the rather harsh voltage drop of .7 volts for using these diodes. Therefore I recommend the use of Schottky diodes which only exact a .2 volt drop penalty for their use. A 1N5820, 1N5821 or 1N5822 should be more than sufficient for these needs and would only cost a .2 volt drop. I've used them in voltage regulation applications with an LM-315T voltage regulator where my source voltage was 12 volts and I was trying to get 9 volts out. A .7 volt drop is significant in this application and that's why I reached for the Schottky diode.

REPLY







Dec 3, 2009. 8:52 AMRick_Covert says:

Sorry I meant to say that I used an LM-317T voltage regulator.

REPLY







Nov 22, 2009. 9:37 AMemerson.john says:

Do not put a diode in it. It will only cause the voltage available from that tiny solar array to drop .7V, and will thus degrade charging performance. Try to rember not to connect anything backwards and there is no reason for the diode. There is certainly no way it can IMPROVE performance.

REPLY







Jan 11, 2009. 11:16 AMkpdyer says:

hey, i did this but modified it a bit. The power is going through but the phone (an old Nokia 2610) won't charge, no matter how long I leave it up. what is happening???

REPLY







Oct 16, 2009. 12:24 AMsharlston says:

a diode is he answer

REPLY







Oct 16, 2009. 12:24 AMsharlston says:

hey i would insert a diode in there

REPLY







Oct 1, 2009. 10:58 AMColonel88 says:

Some phones will not charge because they are "stupid" Like u cannot just hookip a 5 volt regulator (7805) to a 9 volt battery and charge the itouch. It doesnt work and oh please put a diode on this or the charger will suck badly. :DD

REPLY







Aug 16, 2009. 7:16 PMsoapsayhello says:

I am in China. Please email me soapsayhello@hotmail for solar cell phone chargers.

REPLY







Jun 28, 2009. 6:36 AMreno91 says:

where do i get tha stuff

REPLY







Apr 15, 2009. 6:35 AM11avumkh says:

hey people out there i need a lil help with a something something im in Cape Town, South African and i need to find out where to buy the materials for a solar powered phone charger Do answer Shot ; - )

REPLY







Feb 6, 2009. 11:01 PMimakethings says:

did u add a diode?

REPLY







Jan 27, 2009. 1:36 AMbeayayan says:

hey guys... i need your help i have a thesis proposal regarding in this topic "solar charger. email me at greencol07@yahoo.com if you have any suggestion. thanks it will be big previleges to me

REPLY







Oct 8, 2008. 8:27 PMgentlehorse says:

Hi, your cell phone charger is cool. Is there anything to prevent the phone from overcharging? Thanks, Doug

REPLY







Nov 6, 2008. 4:25 PMBriguy9 says:

you might have an old junky phone. Most new ones have sensors that sense when the battery is full and stops taking electricity from the power source, even though its still plugged in.

REPLY







Oct 29, 2008. 2:33 PMkpdyer says:

hey i'm doing a science fair project involving solar charging a cell phone and i saw this... would you mind if i based it on this instuctable and others like it? Also, about how much would it cost, and do you recommend any other instructables?

REPLY







Oct 11, 2008. 1:47 PMNoname23 says:

Deliverance, nice. XD

REPLY







Sep 1, 2008. 5:20 PMgiloray says:

woah........this is so cool..but how much is the total cost of the equipments that are used is making the device?... can anyone there help me in finding some research/....

REPLY







Aug 15, 2008. 9:07 PMguitarmansmitty says:

Sorry but I need to ask if anyone has actually done this one yet. The reason I ask is that I don't want to fry my battery and have to get another one (if I can even find one).

REPLY







Aug 14, 2008. 12:26 PMHeavy Metal Handyman says:

Dude I built the thing and had to make about 50 of em and let me tell you that solar cells VARY ALOT. Not one of the 100 solar cells was exact as per the specks (I painfully checked each one with my meter a very slow process indeed). I would suggest in purchasing 4 or 5 solar cells and take the highest voltage of the bunch and pair them together, thats what I did. I had no problem with the voltage being too high because of the low amperage. 7 and 8 volts was optimum for charging a dead cell phone. The ones I build for this demonstration worked but the sun must be bright. Again some worked better do to the large variation in solar cells strength. Lesson learned, ALL SOLAR CELLS ARE NOT CREATED EQAUL. No voltage regulator is required as far as the ones I built. Keep in mind the price you pay for something, 2 solar cells = 16.50 altoids tin 1.50 = $18.00 thats not including all the tape and solder and heatsrink tubing .....when you can already buy on the market wink wink for say $19.00.



REPLY







Aug 12, 2008. 9:15 AMalex-sharetskiy says:

put solar panels on both sides of the altoids tin, (on the inside) you might also want to add a voltage regulator so you don't kill your phone

REPLY







Aug 14, 2008. 9:11 AMNirjuana says:

Probably regulator wouldn't work because they usually need about +2 volts larger input voltage than the output voltage. Simple voltage divider would work but it decreases efficiency. And I'm not even sure can you charge your phone with 30 mAh current...

REPLY







Aug 14, 2008. 9:12 AMNirjuana says:

Sorry, I meant 20 mAh current.

REPLY







Aug 14, 2008. 9:43 AMalex-sharetskiy says:

the voltage regulators that i have, they would work, if you put 4 volts through them, you would get 3.5+/- volts out using a 5v regulator you probably could charge your phone, but the power you put into it, would be eaten by the phone's "check for signal" thing, so you might have to turn your phone off in order to charge it

REPLY







Aug 14, 2008. 10:36 AMNirjuana says:

At least my charger gives out 5 volt so I'm no sure could it be run with anything below it. But I recommend to get some better solar cells, for example, you can get solar cells from DealExtreme that give out 80mAh @ 4V for 8.25$. And they're not even so big, 2.36 in x 2.36 in so it could be used for many purposes.

REPLY







Aug 11, 2008. 6:23 PMjillg says:

this is cool I've always liked solar powered gadgets oh also... First (always wanted to say that!)

REPLY



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bug

FM Telephone Bug
Here is a simple transmitter that when connected to a phone line, will transmit anything on that line (execpt the dial tone) to any FM radio. The frequency can be tuned from 88 to about 94Mhz and the range is about 200 feet. It is extremely easy to build and is therefore a good, useful beginner project.
Schematic

This is the schematic of the phone transmitter
Parts

Part

Total Qty.

Description

Substitutions
R1 1 180 Ohm 1/4 W Resistor
R2 1 12K 1/4 W Resistor
C1 1 330pF Capacitor
C2 1 12pF Capacitor
C3 1 471pF Capacitor
C4 1 22pF Capacitor
Q1 1 2SA933 Transistor
D1, D2, D3, D4 4 1SS119 Silicon Diode
D5 1 Red LED
S1 1 SPDT Switch
L1 1 Tuning Coil
MISC 1 Wire, Circuit Board

Notes
1. L1 is 7 turns of 22 AWG wire wound on a 9/64 drill bit. You may need to experiment with the number of turns.
2. By stretching and compressing the coils of L1, you can change the frequency of the transmitter. The min frequency is about 88 Mhz, while the max frequency is around 94 Mhz.
3. The green wire from the phone line goes to IN1. The red wire from the phone line goes to IN2. The green wire from OUT1 goes to the phone(s), as well as the red wire from OUT2.
4. The antenna is a piece of thin (22 AWG) wire about 5 inches long.
5. All capacitors are rated for 250V or greater.
6. The transmitter is powered by the phone line and is on only when the phone is in use. S1 can be used to turn the transmitter off if it is not needed.
7. If you have problems with the LED burning out, then add a 300 ohm 1/4W resistor in series with it.
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3 Watt FM Transmitter

3 Watt FM Transmitter

By Rae XL Tkacik
This is the schematic for an FM transmitter with 3 to 3.5 W output power that can be used between 90 and 110 MHz. Although the stability isn't so bad, a PLL can be used on this circuit.
This is a circuit that I've build a few years ago for a friend, who used it in combination with the BLY88 amplifier to obtain 20 W output power. From the notes that I made at the original schematic, it worked fine with a SWR of 1 : 1.05 (quite normal at my place with my antenna).

Schematic
This is the schematic of the 3W FM Transmitter
Parts:

Part

Total Qty.

Description

Substitutions
R1,R4,R14,R15 4 10K 1/4W Resistor
R2,R3 2 22K 1/4W Resistor
R5,R13 2 3.9K 1/4W Resistor
R6,R11 2 680 Ohm 1/4W Resistor
R7 1 150 Ohm 1/4W Resistor
R8,R12 2 100 Ohm 1/4W Resistor
R9 1 68 Ohm 1/4W Resistor
R10 1 6.8K 1/4W Resistor
C1 1 4.7pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C2,C3,C4,C5,C7,C11,C12 7 100nF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C6,C9,C10 3 10nF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C8,C14 2 60pF Trimmer Capacitor
C13 1 82pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C15 1 27pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C16 1 22pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C17 1 10uF 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
C18 1 33pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C19 1 18pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C20 1 12pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C21,C22,C23,C24 4 40pF Trimmer Capacitor
C25 1 5pF Ceramic Disc Capacitor
L1 1 5 WDG, Dia 6 mm, 1 mm CuAg, Space 1 mm
L2,L3,L5,L7,L9 5 6-hole Ferroxcube Wide band HF Choke (5 WDG)
L4,L6,L8 3 1.5 WDG, Dia 6 mm, 1 mm CuAg, Space 1 mm
L10 1 8 WDG, Dia 5 mm, 1 mm CuAg, Space 1 mm
D1 1 BB405 BB102 or equal (most varicaps with C = 2-20 pF [approx.] will do)
Q1 1 2N3866
Q2,Q4 2 2N2219A
Q3 1 BF115
Q5 1 2N3553
U1 1 7810 Regulator
MIC 1 Electret Microphone
MISC 1 PC Board, Wire For Antenna, Heatsinks

Notes:
1. Email Rae XL Tkacik with questions, comments, etc.
2. The circuit has been tested on a normal RF-testing breadboard (with one side copper). Make some connections between the two sides. Build the transmitter in a RF-proof casing, use good connectors and cable, make a shielding between the different stages, and be aware of all the other RF rules of building.
3. Q1 and Q5 should be cooled with a heat sink. The case-pin of Q4 should be grounded.
4. C24 is for the frequency adjustment. The other trimmers must be adjusted to maximum output power with minimum SWR and input current.
5. Local laws in some states, provinces or countries may prohibit the operation of this transmitter. Check with the local authorities.
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Schematic This is the schematic of the 3W FM Transmitter